My recent ??? on the building forum

[StillHope]

Just letting everyone know that I am in the process of"assuming the best and asking questions".

My builder seems like a nice guy and came with a very good reference.

The circumstances of me getting a construction loan was like getting

out of a hurricane approaching area : you know what you need to take

but you have to save your life..

So it was the proposal,submitted and rejected by the

financial institution for technicalities (which is missing a lot of

details like rain gutters (like Nalu said,I thought it was standard

procedure),type of water heater and dozens other important things ..)

And it was a joke of the contract -basically saying how much money

the builder gets after each stage of the construction.

Anyway,out of about 100 lenders in construction loan business

according tho the financial broker i was working with (for a

year!)there was only one left for lava zone 2.

And even with my perfect credit it was like being in an electric chair ...
Still,no one forced me to be in that chair.
But it was very likely that if I start correcting all the
technicalities I wouldn't get the loan at all.
But I just want you to know that I am in the process of negotiating
with the builder and I wish I had a knowledge or someone knowledgeable to ask not on the forum .
So my purpose is to get the information I need ,
NOT TO DISCREDIT THE BUILDER.
Depending on the outcome of our negotiation I might even post him
in a good section of our BBB on Punaweb.He is reliable and mostly did good job on the house.

[Kelena]

That seems prudent. Negotiating is always best. Sometimes people don't realize our expectations because they are not communicated well. No one presumes from your questions that your GC did not perform as expected. Building is a stressful process. Some make it look easy, but I know it wasn't for me.

[Rob Tucker]

It is always important to get the builder to state in writing precisely what is included and well as a list of precisely what is not included.

[DanielP]

Didn't we discuss contracts a couple a years ago?

[Nalu]

This is even more important in times like these. According to my husband with the recession going on and everyone hungry for business and trying to undercut "the other guy", he's been hearing stories of guys building the bare bones homes to get the price to seem low, and adding all the extras "ala cart", kind of like the airlines. So make sure to ask LOTS of questions and get it spelled out in your contract what is included. It is our standard procedure to first submit a proposal including basic inclusions to a potential client, then when we've agreed upon a price to prepare a more "formal" contract for review. Is it possible Stillhope that when you talked about putting in the well instead of catchment that you had agreed to omit the gutters? I hope it works out well for you either way. Angela

[DanielP]

Stillhope,

Simple process to start from here. Write a letter to your Contractor, spelling out your complaints and the reasons for each one IN DETAIL and tell him/her what would satisfy you as a remedy.

Easier than writing a contract!

Dan

[DanielP]

FYI in Contracts, hand written and signed by both parties trumps typed and signed, trumps boilerplate and signed, trumps drawings, trumps verbal, trumps assumed.

[John S. Rabi]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Rob Tucker
It is always important to get the builder to state in writing precisely what is included.

---

Having had numerous homes built in Puna during the past decade, that is EXACTLY what I ALWAYS promoted here on Punaweb. Interestingly, the only two builders I would highly recommend are the one in question and Dustin, the husband of "Nalu!"

Aloha,
John S. Rabi, GM,PB,ABR,CRB,CM,FHS
808.327.3185
johnrabi@johnrabi.com
http://www.JohnRabi.com
Typically Tropical Properties
"The Next Level of Service!"

[StillHope]

John,I have no one to blame but myself.
I explained why I didn't have a chance to get a proper contract.
I trusted the builder because you recommended him.

I am not saying that he can not build a good house and I am sure the one he did for you was good (and 19 others,as you said, he build for the clients you got him).

All I need is all the staff on the proposal which we submitted as a contract to be done. And we are negotiating it.
---------------------------------------------------------------
And about "highly recommended".You highly recommended the financial broker from Island Home Capital.

Later you told me that he "butchered the loan for your other client"

and posted the whole thread about Island Home Capital being a "joke "

of a company.

Though my loan took forever but he got it and on very good terms.
And with my out of state employment it was not an easy job.

What does it prove?

Only that people make mistakes.And sometimes do different

quality jobs for different people ,especially in this tough times,

as Nalu mentioned.
-------------------------------------------------------------
I believe that my builder and I will come to some understanding and get the most things done.
He made some mistakes,but he seems like a decent person and has good sense of humor.
Once we were complaining to each other about the loan taking forever.

I said "Well,John recommended him .." And we switched the topic.
And all of a sudden he said:

"Wait a moment! John recommended me too!"

And we both had a good laugh,because he knew that I trusted him.

I hope once we will have a good laugh about all this too.

[StillHope]

Daniel,thank for the suggestion.That's what I am trying to do.But I do need more information.